SHEATS - GOLDSTEIN RESIDENCE

Photography by Aleph Molinari The Sheats–Goldstein Residence is one of John Lautner's most iconic works. In the shape of a dramatic concrete structure cantilevered into the hills above Los Angeles, the house was originally designed in 1963 and continuously refined over the following decades. With its sweeping triangular roofline, floor-to-ceiling glass, and seamless integration into the hillside, it stands as one of the most radical expressions of California modernism, dissolving the boundary between architecture and landscape. The house is inseparable from its owner, James Goldstein, who acquired it in 1972 and dedicated himself to its ongoing transformation in close collaboration with Lautner until the architect's death in 1994. An art collector of discerning taste, Goldstein has filled the residence with works including pieces by DeWain Valentine, Ed Ruscha, Bernar Venet, Xavier Veilhan, and a dedicated brutalist installation by James Turrell — as well as his own unmistakable collection of hats, jackets, and tennis shoes. A window from his bedroom looks directly into the pool; James Bond-ish technological controls govern the house's lighting and systems. Lesser known is the vast garden that descends the ravine alongside the house — a layered landscape of modernist Chinese gateways, winding stairs, and a dense collection of plants that rivals the architecture above it in ambition and strangeness.